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A Daily Genesis

Genesis 3:15-16

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[B][COLOR=#ff0000]†.[/COLOR] Gen 3:15a . . I will put enmity between you and the woman,[/B]

I don't think the kind of enmity that God spoke of was the kind where friends fall out of harmony; but rather, He decreed a sort of poetic justice; viz[B]:[/B] "You caused her downfall; and now I'm going to make it so that she causes yours."

[B][COLOR=#ff0000]†.[/COLOR] Gen 3:15b . . And between your offspring and her offspring.[/B]

The word for "offspring" is from [I]zera'[/I] (zeh'-rah) which is an ambiguous Hebrew word that technically means[B]:[/B] seed; but can also mean a product and/or a result, and also fruit, plant, sowing-time, and/or progeny and posterity.

For example[B]:[/B] the 53rd chapter of Isaiah predicts that Yhvh's servant would "see seed" in spite of the fact that Isaiah also predicted Yhvh's servant would die and leave behind no posterity. In that case; zera' can't possibly mean that Yhvh's servant would generate a family tree; but rather, see the fruits of his labor; which within the context of the 53rd chapter of Isaiah consists of bearing the sins of many and thus shielding them from the wrath of God.

Zera' is one of those words that can be either singular or plural, depending upon the context. Other words like that are deer, sheep, Man, and head (as in head of livestock). Every kid in a family can be called the parents' zera' whether there's eight kids or a lone child.

[B][COLOR=#ff0000]†.[/COLOR] Gen 3:15c . . He will pound your head, and you will bite his heel.[/B]

The Hebrew word translated "he" isn't gender specific. It can mean either he, she, and/or it. So that Gen 3:15c could be-- and in some translations is --translated: "It will pound your head, and you will bite its heel". The decision to use "he" was an arbitrary choice; but seeing as how the Serpent, to my knowledge, is unable to reproduce itself with biological offspring, I'd recommend going with "it".

Anyway; from that point onwards the Serpent has made it his mission in life to prevent Eve's seed from doing the very thing God predicted; eventuating in Herod's slaughter of Jewish toddlers and Christ's execution.

Who are the Serpent's seed? Liars and Murderers; for starters (John 8:44). Additional Serpentary seed are people who exist solely to satisfy their passions and desires (Eph 2:1-3). And people given to rivalry and strife (Jas 3:14-15). Those kinds of seed are seed from the aspect of being products of the Serpent's handiwork.

[B][COLOR=#ff0000]†.[/COLOR] Gen 3:16a . . And to the woman He said: I will make most severe your pangs in childbearing;[/B]

For many women, the pregnancy stage of motherhood is often characterized by bloating, illness, nausea, depression, anxiety, insecurity, and irritability. For them, pregnancy is more like a curse than the intended blessing of Gen 1:28.

It's difficult to imagine childbirth without pain because that's the way it's always been right from the beginning, even with Eve's very first child. Apparently before Man's fall, having a baby would have been no more painful than doing one's business in the ladies room-- and just as lacking in danger to mom and baby.

The Hebrew of that passage is very difficult; not even the great rabbis Rashi and Ramban were in agreement how best to interpret it. But it appears to me simply the very first prohibition against adultery.

That is probably one of the most hated verses in the whole Bible. Eve's daughters do not like to be subjugated to and/or dominated by men. It really goes against their grain; and if the women's suffrage movement that took place in America's early 1900's were to be thoroughly analyzed, it would not surprise me that women's right to vote wasn't really an equality issue[B]:[/B] it was a rebellion against male domination.

That rule isn't restricted to marriage. It regulates women's place in church too-- all churches.

"As in all the congregations of the saints, women should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed to speak, but must be in submission, as the Law says. If they want to inquire about something, they should ask their own husbands at home; for it is disgraceful for a woman to speak in the church." (1Cor 14:33-35)

"Let a woman quietly receive instruction with entire submissiveness. I do not allow a woman to teach or exercise authority over a man, but to remain quiet. For it was Adam who was first created, and then Eve. And it was not Adam who was deceived, but the woman being quite deceived, fell into transgression." (1Tim 2:11-15)

How long the Adams lived together sans the imposition of a gender hierarchy isn't stated; but evidently there was no need for it prior to the tree incident. But the incident aptly demonstrates that manipulative women can quickly lead men to ruin in no time at all because it's all too easy for them to persuade men to behave themselves in ways contrary to their own better judgment; which reminds me of a really cute line from "My Big Fat Greek Wedding".

Toula Portokalos complains to her mother: "Ma, dad is so stubborn. What he says goes. Ah, the man is the head of the house!"

Toula's mom, Maria Portokalos, responds: "Let me tell you something, Toula. The man is the head, but the woman is the neck; and she can turn the head any way she wants."

That's humorous but it's not a laughing matter. Many a man has been led like sheep to the slaughter by women who got them to do things contrary to their own better judgment.

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